Dubai International Airport was closed and passengers were ordered off planes this morning after a suspected Iranian drone strike triggered a huge explosion near the complex.
British travellers were among those left stranded as flights were halted and terminals evacuated, leaving many scrambling to find a way out of the UAE.
Explosions were reported near the airport around 8am local time (4am GMT), with a fire seen burning close to the site.
Video circulating online appears to show a projectile heading toward the airport as a man behind the camera shouts: ‘It’s coming, it’s coming to the airport.’
Moments later a huge explosion erupts, sending thick plumes of smoke billowing into the air. ‘Oh my God,’ he adds.
Dubai authorities were quick to claim that there had been ‘no incident’ at the airport, but confirmed there had been a successful interception of a drone, with no injuries reported.
Other loud bangs were heard 30 miles away along the coast at Ras Al-Khaimah.
At least two emergency alerts sounded on mobile phones and passengers already on flights ready to leave were deboarded and the terminals evacuated – the first time such measures had been taken since the war began.
Damage likely from debris shot down in the drone attack was visible after a small fire began on the side of the passenger walkway at the busy Terminal 3, which handles Emirates flights.
Explosions were reported near Dubai International Airport around 8am local time (4am GMT), with a fire seen burning close to the complex after another suspected Iranian drone attack
Video circulating online appears to show a projectile heading toward the airport as a man behind the camera shouts: ‘It’s coming, it’s coming to the airport’
Pictured: Damage at Dubai airport following drone strikes this morning
: Passengers waiting to board flights at Dubai airport this morning
Flights were suspended around 10am local time (6am GMT) and police cars blocked all entrances to the airport causing traffic chaos.
It comes as Emirates, the largest airline in the Middle East, announced on Saturday that it was suspending all flights to and from Dubai until further notice, after an aerial interception took place over Dubai airport during attacks from Iran.
‘Please do not go to the airport,’ the airline said in a statement on X.
Iran has unleashed a series of furious retaliatory strikes across the Middle East, launching attacks on Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Israel in a series of assaults that have left the region in flames.
Drones have struck oil facilities and airports in Iraq as US-led troops gunned down several potential attacks over the Kurdish city of Erbil amid warnings of possible attacks on hotels.
A network of Iranian-backed Shia factions, Islamic Resistance in Iraq, claimed it launched an attack on a US military base near Baghdad Airport ‘in retribution’ for the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed last Saturday.
Meanwhile, Israel and Iran have continued to exchange fire overnight, with the IDF confirming it had launched a fresh wave of attacks against ‘terror targets’ in the Dahiyeh District of Beirut, Lebanon, as the war enters its eighth day.
Iran also fired its twenty-third round of strikes, a statement from IRGC-affiliated Tasmin news agency said as the IDF reported missiles coming from the region towards Israel had been detected.
Explosive flames and billowing smoke has been raging over Tehran after airstrikes struck Mehrabad International Airport in the early hours of this morning.
Nine out of ten drone attacks launched towards Qatar were intercepted, with the tenth striking an uninhabited area, the country’s Ministry of Defence said, while also confirming no injuries were caused.
Four drones heading towards the Shaybah oil field in Saudi Arabia were intercepted and destroyed over the Empty Quarter desert, officials confirmed.
At the same time, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said Britain ‘stood ready’ to defend its ally.
